Head of Presidential Administration: “Tashkent residents are justifiably outraged by construction in neighborhood courtyards”
The Prosecutor General’s Office will review the legality of residential courtyard development projects across Tashkent, head of the Presidential Administration Saida Mirziyoyeva said during a visit to the Lolazor mahalla. She said those responsible should face punishment, including prison.
**Presidential Administration Head Condemns "Barbaric" Destruction of Tashkent Courtyards, Orders City-Wide Review**
Saida Mirziyoyeva, the Head of the Presidential Administration, visited Tashkent's Lolazor mahalla in the Mirabad district on Thursday, acknowledging the "justifiable outrage" of residents over construction projects encroaching on neighborhood courtyards, playgrounds, and sports facilities. Her visit follows growing public discontent and media reports highlighting the issue across the capital.
Lolazor is one of several neighborhoods where green spaces, children's playgrounds, and football pitches are being demolished to make way for "modern" mahalla buildings, often single-story structures. Despite residents' protests, prosecutors, courts, and other authorities have frequently found no violations, while developers have reportedly threatened legal action against those who oppose the projects.
Days before Mirziyoyeva's visit, Lolazor resident Yevgeniya Muminova detailed the situation on social media. She stated that a 27.5-meter, nine-story building was being constructed without public consultations. The construction permit, she noted, was based on a city council meeting on January 21, 2026, attended by district administration officials and only one mahalla representative. Muminova highlighted that the Mirabad district Prosecutor’s Office found no violations, despite a multi-story building being erected under a permit for a one-story reconstruction. Residents' requests for an investigation into the legality of replacing a children's playground with a parking lot were met with a simple confirmation of a construction permit.
Muminova emphasized residents' demands for an investigation into the land allocation for the parking lot and the legal basis for a high-rise in an established residential area. "The country’s authorities promised us more green spaces, children’s play areas, sports facilities for adults and even a swimming pool in every district. Why, instead, are we once again seeing high-rise buildings being constructed on every available piece of land? We want sports facilities and green spaces — not another building with a parking lot!" she asserted.
The day prior to Mirziyoyeva's visit, Gazeta published a letter from another Lolazor resident, Anatoly Osipov, who reported that district landscaping workers had "barbarically" cut down young trees he had cultivated for three years.
During her visit, Mirziyoyeva echoed these sentiments, stating that trees planted by residents had been "barbarically destroyed" and that a business center was planned for a children's playground site. She stressed that public spaces should serve their intended purpose for the people, not be repurposed for office or residential developments.
Mirziyoyeva announced that the Prosecutor General’s Office would review similar construction projects throughout Tashkent. "It is important to verify the legality of construction permits, compliance with urban planning regulations and respect for residents' rights. If violations are uncovered, those responsible must be held accountable — including imprisonment where appropriate," she declared. Gazeta has confirmed that prosecutors have already initiated an investigation into the Lolazor project.
Residents also reported that another plot in the same mahalla has been fenced off, leading to the disappearance of another children’s playground. Two other residential courtyards in the neighborhood have already been developed.
Photographs from the visit show Mirziyoyeva accompanied by several high-ranking officials, including deputy prosecutor general of Uzbekistan Salom Samadov, Tashkent prosecutor Anvar Urmanov, her independent adviser and Presidential Administration’s representative in the United States Komil Allamjonov, first deputy head of the Presidential Administration’s Department for Public Security and Rule of Law Aziz Azimov, and first deputy hokim of Tashkent responsible for construction, accessibility, communications, ecology and greening Bakhtiyor Rahmonov.
Gazeta has previously covered several similar cases of residential courtyard redevelopment. Following one of its recent reports on the Chulpan mahalla, a planned construction was canceled after residents' year-long opposition and three lost court cases. Another similar dispute is currently unfolding in Akkurgan mahalla.